Women and our Big, Sexy Brains

YOU AND YOUR BIG, SEXY BRAIN

How Women's Brains Differ From Men's Brains:

"Women have 10 times more white matter. Gray matter creates processing centers in the brain, and white matter creates the connections between them. In other words, men have lots of areas for processing concrete data -- like mathematical equations -- and women have lots of connections that allow them to see and process patterns." [Source: Live Science]

So let's think about that for a moment: women have 10 times the capacity to process connections and patterns. (No wonder I can't go to the store for just one thing!) Everything we see, we connect with something else. We find patterns where men might see nothing. And we value the connections between people most of all.

Take A Moment To Jot Down The Answers To These Three Questions:

What patterns are you noticing in your life?

Are those patterns helping you or hindering you?

Assuming it takes 60-90 days to "reprogram" your brain, what new pattern could you start today that would make a difference in your life?

Women's Larger Hippocampus Means We Navigate By Landmarks

"Another brain region now known to diverge in the sexes anatomically and in its response to stress is the hippocampus, a structure crucial for memory storage and for spatial mapping of the physical environment. Imaging consistently demonstrates that the hippocampus is larger in women than in men. These anatomical differences might well relate somehow to differences in the way males and females navigate. Many studies suggest that men are more likely to navigate by estimating distance in space and orientation ("dead reckoning"), whereas women are more likely to navigate by monitoring landmarks. Interestingly, a similar sex difference exists in rats. Male rats are more likely to navigate mazes using directional and positional information, whereas female rats are more likely to navigate the same mazes using available landmarks. (Investigators have yet to demonstrate, however, that male rats are less likely to ask for directions.)" [Source: Larry Cahill, Scientific American]

So if women navigate by landmark rather than by orientation, what does that mean for our life journey? I think this is related to the pattern-seeking information above: we recognize landmarks because we are always seeing the whole picture, not just the destination. We know that the big tree near the yellow house is halfway to the market that has the good produce, which is near the post office and by-the-way-we-need-stamps. Sound familiar?

Your ability to see the all of the parts in relationship to the whole is one of the gifts of having a uniquely female brain. Women know that each element of our lives affects the whole. Our work impacts our home life which impacts our children which impacts our sleep habits which impacts our friendships... we see the whole picture all at once, and it can be overwhelming.

As a result we often:
Crave balance but find it hard to compromise
Tend to treat others better than ourselves
Tire ourselves by chasing success
Are ready to work smarter, instead of harder

That's right--it's not your FAULT! You are programmed to put others first and see that big picture. However, it is your responsibility to take your power back and get some support.

http://www.successcoachingforwomen.com/

Listen to an information call about our new Women's Success Coaching Program(parts 1 and 2) at the following link: http://www.electrickites.com/community-audio.html